The Tomb of the Damned
by Enzoo03
Summary: Steven Knightgallows and Augustine Conharme are bestfriends ever since they defended each other from their bullies in-Idris. One day they decided to go in Brooklyn, only to discover an ancient secret that was hidden from the new gen shadowhunters for centuries. OC story. Rated R for the language and scenes to come.
1. Prologue

_I don't own Mortal Instruments or Darkstalkers, so please... enjoy. This is my first upload. Also, this was supposed to be a crossover fict, but the category of Night Warriors: Darkstalkers wasn't around._

They had seen what happened, both Augustine and Steve marveled at the execution of such macabre form of murder. The still beating heart of this Shadowhunter, lying in a pool of his own blood was sprawled in the dark alley on the side of the hunter's moon. The killer did a good job in-framing the death, but sadly, they'd seen the murder, although they had been too late. Steve didn't exactly know that the next murder would be here, he just came to warn Lucian Graymark—Luke Garroway, of the murderer that has been framing the Night Children, once again.

He knew this is an insignia to trigger a war between Shadowhunters and Downworlders, one similar to this pattern has been used earlier just this year by none other than the late Valentine Morgenstern. The nape-long silvery blonde hair of Steve glowed defiantly at the Alley's dark and eerie atmosphere of the alley, he was somehow like Jace who looked like those stone statues of Angels one might see in-Cathedrals, except that Steven Knightgallows' personality isn't quite in-sync with his looks.

Augustine Conharme, glared at the shadowy figure that tried to escape earlier. The figure didn't have time to escape because Augustine immediately bellowed at her to stop. His baby-blue eyes glared at the dark figure.

"Alright, come on, show yourself." Augustine said plainly.

The figure emerged into the poor lighting of the alley. For her age-which is about thirty according to Steve's head calculations—she looked very beautiful. Her soft curly brown hair framed her round face. Her eyes were as green as the leaves of a poison ivy. Her slim and wonderfully curved body was covered by a dark leather coat reaching up to her toes, her pants were an odd color of purple.

"There's nowhere to run, bitch. So if I were you, I'd start praying to Satan, cause you're about to experience a rough ride back on the highway to hell." Augustine yelled through his pants, Steve couldn't blame him; the lady was extremely fast on her heels.

The lady laughed, her laughter sounded soft and melodic, "Oh, wouldn't you like to spend some time with me? You did capture me after all. See? I'm like a cornered cat… a very naughty cornered cat." She said, twirling her curly dark-brown hair. Her voice was inviting, and it dripped like honey bathed in poison.

Her green eyes were the most impenetrable defense mechanism she has to offer, she was hard to read to the point Augustine can't analyze her. Augustine Conharme is usually good in-analyzing a mundane, shadowhunter or downworlder's personality via eye-contact, but this time, he's having a very hard time distinguishing what's wrong with this sexy demon.

"Augustine." Steve said, "Keep your guard up. She's killed a Shadowhunter, an adult. And it's not hard to believe that she can nibble on the flesh of your stomach in just two seconds."

"That is a harsh accusation coming from a boy like you." The lady said with her soft and inviting voice.

"Well, the evidence is lying half-dead on the ground isn't he?"

She laughed, a soft laughter that would make any Shadowhunter forget that she's a Demon. "Why... tragic isn't it? He only has two minutes until his heart stops beating. But I won't do that to any of you boys... I'll nurture you... care for you... lick that thick honey from your dicks that you call semen."

Augustine's mouth gaped open, feeling the intense urge to drool, but Steve glared at him with his dark green eyes, which caused Augustine to snap back to his composure. "Now, Augustine... ready. Keep your head up, I can sense her power... she's no ordinary demon."

"Don't be so sure young Nephilim, I am not what I seem." She said, elongating her long talons of claws.

"Yeah? That's what they all say, lady."

"Can't we just have a little fun? It doesn't have to be this way. I have the natural powers of arousing both of you."

"Yes, please." Augustine said, after his long silence.

"Gus, no. She's tricking you, can't you see that?" Steve said, for the first time he traced impatience in his own voice.

"I told you never to call me that in-public, you sick excuse of a human being." Augustine replied.

"Ah, for the love of-Augustine, I was trying to wake you up."

Her leather coat exploded into a flock of bats that circled around her, hissing like the storm. It made Steve and Augustine take cover behind the trash bins. The bats compressed on her, maintaining the circular formation, until the noisy creatures were transformed into her dark, purplish wings.

The woman with the dark, curly hair disappeared and was replaced with a much more beautiful lady with straight green hair that spilled from her head. Her outfit was replaced by a tube; the hem of her gothic dress was covered in white puffy fur. Not much was replaced from body, except for the black as the moonlit night leathery wings that was wrapped around her hips. The veins of her wings stuck out in contrast to the spiny dried bones in the middle and on the side, ending in a pointed horn.

She smiled a soft smile. "Come on Nephilim, you wanted to resist, then your resistance will be rewarded by an unimaginable and painful death."

Steve didn't say anything, just stared at her with his intense green eyes, trying to decipher the Succubus' next move.

Augustine can only stare at her chest in-awe, Steve tried to wake him from the hypnosis that plunged him deep as a knife. "Bro, focus. She's using a trick on you."

"Oh sorry, I'm sorry if I'm a little off today, it's just-" Augustine said in an aggravated sarcastic tone, then quickly snapped back to reality as if he's been woken from a dream.

"I'd love to watch you argue, boys. But it seems as though I have another date with a certain… Daylighter.." She spread her dark-leathery wings, and shot herself into the black and blue shade of the night, tainted with twinkling stars. The sound of her laughter died away as she ascended to the sky.

"Steve, no." Augustine said, as if he can read what Steve is about to do.

"No…"

"Good."

"Sorry."


	2. Good deeds

Ebony HighSmith got pretty bored waiting in her big-ass apartment building, but small apartment room; she pretty much lived with Magnus Bane, the High Warlock of Brooklyn. He was a nice guy, Magnus. The only con in living with him is that he sometimes has a bad-case of PMS, not literally of course. But sometimes when she causes trouble, Magnus scolded her like the mother she could'nt have.

Ebony lived below Magnus' room; her front door was glamoured from the eyes of peeping Mundanes or Downworlders or Shadowhunters or any of the like, because Magnus didn't want Alec thinking that he was living with a girl, because of obvious reasons: Alec was a jealous homo-friend. (Since she couldn't think of another term for it). She didn't like Alec for sure, she hated Lightwoods, and probably the Lightwoods reciprocated the hostility, creating a mutual hate for each other.

Ebony's apartment room was pretty much a hurricane of dirty laundry that will seriously make an OCD go crazy. Although she is tidy in her small green kitchen, her bedroom is a mass collection of fashionably used clothes.

Ebony lay still on her bed, thinking of the major possibilities that her date might have encountered a car crash of some sort. She got so deep in thought that she started to scrutinize her bedroom as her head and back rested on her soft white bed.

"Maybe I should clean my room…" her eyes moved from the TV in front of her, which lay mound of used clothes on the ground, to her trashcan that's next to her cupboard, just beside the right side of her bed, that has mountains of paper-balls. "Naaahhhh… I'll do my cars first. Then, when she's not here yet, I will totally clean my dirty tools." She said to herself. This is usually Ebony's pastime, talking to herself. Then suddenly, a realization dawned on her that her joke was kind of green, and laughed at the weird epiphany.

She stood from her "bum-position" and moved directly to the chair, right in-front of the vanity mirror. She just stares at herself, while combing her light-brown hair. She scrutinized her face carefully, her olive colored skin. Her misty-blue eyes that seemed more like silver than blue. She even questions the roundness of her face, and why it looks like that.

"Is my face round… or oval?" She said, while carefully staring at herself in the mirror. After she finished questioning the existence of her looks, she plucked a silver rosary from one of the drawers. "This might come in-handy."

At last, her doorbell rang. She quickly stood from her chair, and ran down the long flight of stairs. Ebony opened the door to find a girl with long black hair. She wasn't exactly what Ebony would deem pretty, but she was a very striking young Asian girl, who has coffee like eyes.

"Hey, ready to go?" The girl said.

"Sure, Aline. Let's go." Ebony smiled, and went on her way.

"So, where are we going?" Ebony said, smiling brightly at Aline Penhallow.

They rode a cab around the bright shining lights that dulled the evening's dark, starlit sky. New York was filled with bright colored billboards that glowed mechanically around the city. The buildings stood proud and tall, boasting its artificial elegance. The streets were filled with people; Ebony wondered where they're going, or what kind of lives do each of these individuals have.

"To Taki's." Aline said. "As you can see, this isn't a normal cab. Right Artie?"

"It's Arthur." A deep voice that sounded like rocks crumbling came from the driver's seat.

"Okay..." Aline answered, she grinned at Ebony, a very awkward grin. "So, Ebony, I don't suppose you're a Nephilim?"

"Wow, I didn't expect this." Ebony said, smiling. Trying to distract her. "My date is of the Clave..."

"Don't you like Shadowhunters?"

"Uhhh... depends, really." Ebony said; her eyes wide with emotions that Aline didn't understand.

They stopped in-front of a one storey brick-building, with a low sagged roof. There weren't many windows on the building, but it did look like a prison to Ebony, as always.

"Wow…" Aline said, Ebony sensed the slight disappointment enveloped in her voice. "Jace is such a jerk for telling me to go here. This place looks like a dump." She kicked a can in front of her as she looked down, frowning.

"Looks can be deceiving." Ebony said languidly. They went inside; Aline discovered that the place isn't half-bad, considering the brightly lit restaurant, with wooden booths.

Aline walked to the counter and asked for a table for two. The blond waitress with pink apron seated them beside one of the windows. Ebony stared at the beautiful roundness of the moon that reminded her of her face. The waitress approached them again to give them the menu, and both of them scanned the small paper that's been laminated with hard plastic.

"Ebony, what do you suggest I eat?" Aline asked, grinning.

"My pussy." Ebony replied.

Aline blushed furiously. "I-I-I am no-n-not ready for that..."

Ebony laughed, "God, you make me happy. One day, if we both go to the same school, I'd gladly give you wedgies."

"So, Ebony, would you like to come back with me to the Institute?" Aline said, she was already done with her food, while Ebony is still chomping on her almost finished spaghetti. She wouldn't finish it, because this is her favorite delicacy on the menu.

"Sure, sure. As soon as finish my meal." Ebony said, her suspicion starting to arise. She always had that feeling when she's with someone, the cold pang of distrust thrust like a blade on her chest. Ebony hated Shadowhunters ever since she left the Clave, which is about a year ago.

"Um... hooray." Aline said, looking down.

Ebony finished her spaghetti after fifteen minutes of nibbling on it, while seeking out a plan that will overthrow this desperate Shadowhunter chick. She smiled at Aline, and said, "Aline, would you like to go to the bathroom with me?" Ebony asked, smiling brightly.

"Sure, no problem." Aline stood from her seat, and accompanied Ebony to the small bathroom. There was only one cubicle inside. It looked like the usual white tiles bathroom that smells like a horrible mixture of human digestion and toilet cleaning products. For some weird reason, Ebony enjoyed the smell of the public sanctuary of sanitation.

Ebony went to the vanity mirror, and examined herself… at-least that's what Aline thinks she's doing. The last thing Ebony wants to have is remnants of her past life, she had to do something rash and cold, and she didn't care whatever Aline might think. She's a good girl, Aline, but sadly, Ebony really didn't want any part of the corrupted Shadowhunter system. So Ebony had to slap the cold, hard truth on Aline Penhallow's face.

"Aline." Ebony said, turning to her after fixing her hair.

"Yeah?"

"We're through. Thank you for this night. My time was not entirely wasted, because I was able to feast on my favorite delicacy of this fine establishment! Good night." Ebony said, exiting from the bathroom, her hips moving as she walked to the table they were sitting on, leaving the pay for everything, plus a two-dollar tip.

Ebony strode past the industrial buildings towards her apartment building, moving with cat-like ferocity. The rune of speed she wrote on her stomach still hasn't disappeared, but she felt it fading as she slowed-down. The eerie gray-concrete walls of the industrial buildings seemed to be tainted with the shade of blue around the night's sky, the colorful writings of graffiti felt different. Something's wrong in this street, Ebony knew.

She never mistrusted her instincts, because they were mostly right regarding danger. The first time her instincts worked in a predatorily way was when her father attempted to rape her, she knew that the kissing and stripping were going way far and off the defend, but she kept her mouth shut, in-hopes that her father will be pleased. He was always stoic towards Ebony's improvement in Shadowhunter training, no matter how good she gets, her father doesn't deem skills good.

Ebony walked slowly, and silently as a cat. She drew her rune-marked Dagger from its sheath. It was a simple silver dagger, but its blade bent wavy patterns like a cris. Ebony liked simple weapons, because they're simply light, and most of the training she received when she was nine was all about the precise handling and usage of a small weapon such as a knife or a dagger. She crept slowly, drawing a rune of glamour and speed on her stomach.

Suddenly, there was movement, right behind her. Near the trash cans, and trash bags. Still maintaining her battle-stance, she slowly walked towards the huge collection of trash that insulted Ebony's room full of dirty laundry- "Uhhhh…" A guy with fair-blonde hair stood from the mounds of trash, his body was bruised and dirty. Ebony didn't have time to examine his face, because the moment she saw him, she quickly elbowed him on the face.

The enigmatic guy collapsed at the strength of Ebony's solid elbowing powers. As soon as Ebony saw his rune covered body, she said, "oops… that was mean.". This place is filled with vampires and werewolves!..._ Interesting _she thought _Maybe if I leave him down here, I'll take a video of him while the vampires suck him dry, and the wolves nibble on his poor flesh._ Nonetheless, she had to help him; if ever this guy was part of the Brooklyn Institute, then the Lightwoods had to pay her a fortune for saving this guy's butt. She didn't really care if he dies.

Ebony examined the young Shadowhunter's wounds; he looked like he fell from the sky. But, she wasn't good in autopsying a possibly dying Nephilim.

"What should I do with you?" She said, thinking to herself.

So she grabbed one of his arms, wrapped it around her nape, and pulled him up. "Now, let's take you to Magnus."


	3. An Unlikely Friend

Steve can hear faint voices in an unfamiliar room. The colors of white and green swirled around his vision. But mostly all he could see was a white ball of light that can be indicated as a fluorescent. His head can feel the hard hammer of a fatal headache pounding his brain.

"I'm not taking care of him glitters, he's all yours. You have many rooms in that room of yours."

"Come on, he's one of you. And the Lightwoods are away for at least a week or two. No one will be there to take care of the little guy."

"Ugh. Then, it's gonna cost you Warlock."

"Oh, for the love of!"

"Fine, then I won't do it."

"Oh, just let him stay!"

"Fine! But those do-gooders have to pay me extra!"

"No! Do you know what it is in his arm? It's not just dislocated, demon blood is crushed between his limbs! So I need to find a Warlock that can cure him before the Lightwoods can pick him up, do you understand Missie short brain?"

"UGH FINE!"

Steve heard the sound of the door clicking open and shutting close. Again, he fell into a deep sleep.

Augustine dashed to a convenience store, his sweat trickling from his face and body like he just ran a marathon. He went to the cashier.

"I nee- need... Pe-pe-penis."

"Excuse me?!" The blonde cashier's auburn burned, she looked about eighteen or twenty.

"PENNIES! I need pennies for the phone!"

The cashier gave him the change for his one dollar bill, refusing to look at the young Shadowhunter's eyes. He ran for their phone booth outside the cold breeze of the evening.

He abruptly grabbed the phone, and started dialing Isabelle's number. He felt sort of pissed at the realization that he could have just used his cellphone, but his lack of awareness around his environment made him lose his phone. It wasn't snatched though; he just dropped it somewhere in a galaxy far far…

"Oh what the hell, pick up Izzy! I'm starting to get delusions that my phone is somewhere near the Death Star or Tatooine! Dear god, I'm losing it… Oh dear god… dear dear… god." Augustine said, he knew his misuse of God's name would have made Steve flip, and land on him, while yelling, "YOU BLASPHEMOUS FOOL. YOU WILL SUFFER THE WRATH OF GOD."

But, that was an exaggeration of course, though he does tend to over-react even on the little misuse of God's name-thingamahoo.

"Hello?" Finally, Isabelle picked up.

"IZZY! THANK GOD! DEAR OH DEAR!"

"Augustine? Is that you? What happened? Aren't you and Steve supposed to be in the Institute by now?"

"Oh yes, we are, it's just that the Institute is locked, Church won't let us in apparently... and Steve and I had a run-in with a Succubus. And tech-"

"A Succubus?! Are you serious?" Isabelle's voice pitched a little higher at the word "Succubus". Waving the idea that he can't enter the damn Institute.

"Yes, yes! But that's not important right now! You see… well, he's sort of missing."

"Why? How could he go missing? Unless…"

"He might have been resourceful on the use of his little curse-"

"HOW COULD YOU ALLOW HIM TO DO THAT?!"

"It's not my fault! He spread it on my face, and flew away like he doesn't want to be followed! Or does he? Maybe…"

"WHATEVER! We'll be there tomorrow night, okay?! Geeze… can't believe we have to cut our little vacation-short because of your lack of-"

"It wouldn't hurt to stop blaming and accusing me you know. It's somehow Church's fault-"

"Fine. I'll get Sera to help you. Oh, and you can stay with Simon, he's with his mother right now."

"Oh yes, about Simon, the Succubus is going to devour him anytime soon, she said so."

"Just get your ass in my boyfriend's house. Right now." Isabelle's tone changed into something more serious.

"Steve would have flipped at your language."

"Well, he's not here."

"I hope you're happy."

"JUST DO AS YOU'RE TOLD!"

"Alright, alright… sheez."

Steve slowly opened his eye-lids. At first he thought he saw a damn-awful white ceiling paintjob, but then he wasn't wrong, it was a damn awful paintjob. The smell of strawberry flavored tobacco filled the air, nostalgia flow in his head as he remembered his father smoking this stuff. A white light bulb glowed poorly; Steve could have sworn it was flickering. His thoughts that this place couldn't get any worse, was vanquished by the long line of clothes that lay on the ground. It looked more like Ravener lived in this dump, rather than an actual human-being. He lay on the bed silently, not wishing to see more tidal messes.

A girl's voice came from the archway to the right that splits the kitchen from the semi-living-room. The girl's voice sounded like a high-pitched giddy voice of a toddler, but at the same time there was a hint of superiority to it.

"Uhm. Hi." Steve said shyly, his voice sort of dry. The girl exited from the archway, and sat on a stool, picking up a small toolbox, as she held onto to a dirty piece of cloth. He couldn't see much because his vision was still shaky, but she was a very pretty young-lady in-Steve's opinion. Her long brown hair flowed backwards, revealing her forehead. Steve can see slight curls on her hair, but it was faint. He was good in-determining a person's racial origins by skin, the olive of this girl's skin looked like she came from a hierchary of Filipinas. Even the shape of her face and her height indicates she's Asian.

But something left Steve puzzled; the enigma of this girl's eyes left him baffled at first glance. It was calculative, as Steve delved into the misty blue cornea of the girl; her gaze became heavy and cold, like a block of ice.

"Hey, now listen up, jackass, I got a few rules on how to live with me." She said, now there it is, the hint of superiority in her voice suddenly became dominant. " Number 5: No eating on the bed, I don't like any messes on my bed or whatsoever!" _Kind of ironic _Steve thought. "Number 4: Always, I mean, always help me with my chores since you're going to be staying here for a while. Number 3: No touching my bras or panty, those are mine."

"Why would I want to-"

"I'm sorry. I DIDN'T HEAR MYSELF TELL YOU TO START TALKING. DID I TELL YOU TO ASK QUESTIONS, TWINKLE-TOES?!"

Steve could only raise his hands in-defeat. The girl sighed, and continued speaking. "Anyway, rule number 2: Always… I mean always use men's clothes on the account that you don't want to get punched on the face-"

"Why-"

"MUST YOU INTERUPT MY SPEECH?!"

"Sorry…" Steve looked down, frowning like a scolded child.

"You are forgiven." She patted his head. "And Rule Number 1: Do. Not. Ever. Do. Anything. Perverted. To. Me. Is that clear, soldier?"

"Okay..." He smiled at her.

"Alright, then." She said, propping the small toolbox open, and took a wrench. She started wiping it with the dirty cloth.

"Wait… why am I supposed to stay here?" Steve asked, again with the usual tone of a child that reassured the girl that he's not a homicidal rapist.

"Warlock's idea. Don't look at me, I didn't want you to stay either." She said, as she continued wiping the tool.

"That was really mean."

"Well, get used to it bucko, because you'll be dealing with this bitch for a week or so, understand?" Ebony said.

"Why are you so..." Steve started, but completely waved the thought off, knowing that this girl was hard to deal with.

"Yeah, deal with it."

Steve stared his feet like a scolded child. "I like your eyes."

"So now you're flirting with me?" For some weird reason her lion-like sense was dysfunctional his remark, this quickly alarmed Ebony thinking that he'd be more of a threat.

"No... I was just admiring them, because at the touch of the sunlight... they look like the silver pendants that my mom used to own."

"Used to?" Ebony asked, suddenly interested.

"Yeah..."

Ebony realized that her sudden burst of interest could lead to an unnecessary friendship with the young Nephilim, so she silenced herself just to avoid what was not needed.

Steve held his gaze on Ebony's finger, examining it as if it's some weird creature that has broken the bone-chilling oddity of a demon's outer skin. "You're... AHA! That's it, no wonder you seem familiar! You're Ebony Highsmith!"

_I knew it. _Ebony thought as she fumbled for her small knife inside the tool box. Steve didn't look alarmed, he just stared at her. She grabbed him by the neck, and threw him on to the ground. Her hand still gripping his cotton white shirt as she glared daggers at him, the small knife placed against his neck. "What does the Clave want with me?" She said through her teeth.

He closed his eyes, and the faintest tear rolled from his eyes to his lips. For a moment, Steve didn't move, or say anything, just the resounding silence that clouded this room. Ebony couldn't quite understand the look on his face, because despite the fact that a knife was placed against his throat, he fell silent and didn't say a thing.

"It's okay," He said. "I won't budge... I'm going to die anyway." Steve opened his eyes, and the warm grass green eyes were clothed by fire that was hidden behind his shattered heart. Ebony realized that this guy wasn't an eminent threat to her quiet life away from the Clave, but he was just a boy. A scared little boy trapped in his own worlds of nightmares, which Ebony would like to understand.

She suddenly remembered what her father taught her. _Silence is one of the best forms of defense, because of its subtle nature, its unexpected turn of events. No fool will ever associate a quiet and gentle creature to a powerful warrior. That is why I want you to learn the art of handling a simple weapon. _And that was the first time she held her favorite weapon, the Arnis.

She let go of Steve, and fumbled for her cigarette pack.


	4. The Devil's Song

Steve started to feel abandoned, because the Lightwoods or his Parabatai, Augustine still haven't came to pick him up. Augustine has allotted a big part of his life to Steve, he doesn't even know where to begin with.

"It's been a week." He said to himself.

He felt saddened at the thought that Isabelle Lightwood forgotten him, she always stood as his older-sister whenever Steve's actual sister wasn't around. But thank God for Ebony, Steve thought. She has been an absolute darling to him, and she never fails to make him laugh when necessary.

In a matter of days, Steve might die. He thought about it long and hard, on what might happen to him on the afterlife. Would he be able to cross it the way Dante Alleigrehi has? Or will it be like what Jesus said in the bible? _In my house there are many mansions, if it were not so I would have told you._

Again, the idea of leaving left a hole in his heart, but at the same time he was perplexed because all that mattered to him right now is that God loves him, and he know in his heart that one day they will be together, whether crossing it the way Dante did in the Divine comedy, or spending it in those promised mansions.

He wanted to do something that will make his family proud of him before he dies, he wanted to have his first love, his first kiss… call it cheesy, but that's what he desired ever since he was a child; to see his parents, waving at him while he wins a courageous battle of defeating one hundred demons as a one-man-army, to sit at home at the comfort of his wife and children, to his hair and his features grow thin and frail alongside the people he loves the most.

He wondered if Augustine can feel that longing sensation that he felt. He wanted to know if Augustine actually cared for him, if he was as restless as he is as long as his parabatai wasn't at his side- He felt his chest tighten, again, coughing and spewing a little blood that trickled his mouth. He wiped it before Ebony can glance at him.

He sat quietly on the apartment's window seat, thinking of all the things he would achieve before the year ends. The thoughts that circles Steve's head started to swirl into a vortex of sadness. He could feel it in his chest. The throbbing pain of feeling useless amidst everyone's encouragement that he's an amazing person.. blah blah blah. Those words meant nothing to Steve, but a bunch of bull being spat at his face when people pity him.

"Hi, Steve." Ebony said, sitting beside him. "I finished all the metal works, and now I'm completely free to join you in a day of relaxation." Ebony started to warm up to him for the past week, mainly because he cooks and does the dishes.

Steve smiled sadly, the thought still slurring in his mind.

"I can't make promises, but their disappearance now is highly questionable." She looked at him suggestively, and then burst out laughing, seeing his frowning expression. "Cheer up Steve-O, they'll be back!"

"Yeah… I hope so. So, what are we going to do tonight, aside from rehabbing my dislocated arm?"

Suddenly a thought buzzed into Ebony's head, her zeal was fueled by the thought of doing this, tonight. It was somehow like a slut inviting her to bed, she knew in some way that it was wrong and against some metaphysical force, but she still went the idea.

"Well, I was thinking of going to a concert! They're having one tonight in-Central Park. Zabel Zorrack is playing."

"THE Zabel Zorrack?" Steve said in astonishment.

"That's right!"

"Oh my gosh, it's been my dream to meet him in-person!"

"Then you will enjoy your time with me! Now, plug in the PS3 and let's play Modern Warfare, before we leave."

"Sure, my liege."

"Brother, please calm down." Augustine's sister said as they strode past the sidewalks. For the past six days they've searched, they metaphorically flipped New York upside down, searching for Steve. Dark New York/Brooklyn Alleyways, check. Central park, check. Every knooks and crannies of this goddamn city, check.

Serafine Conharme's long and curly blonde hair flew as the wind passed-by. She didn't look much like her brother though, but the creamy-white color of their skin, and the piercing blue eyes. Sera walked delicately as if she's dancing, trying to catch up to her brother, her body moving with the same rhythm as her steps.

"Sorry, it's just… it's been days and we haven't found him." Augustine replied, they stopped inside the Mexican restaurant near Clary's old apartment. They sat next to each other on one of the booths; Augustine started thinking of possible things as he sat.

"Well…?"

"Isabelle said she'd help, right after the day Steve disappeared, but-"

Sera laid her palm on-top of Augustine's cold knuckles. "Brother, we'll find him, okay? And besides, Isabelle called that morning to tell you that they won't be back in a week."

"And that she'll kill me."

"Will you relax?" Sera said, as she wrapped her hands around Augustine's arm.

He noticed the three Mundanes from the table, staring at Sera. There's nothing in the world that Augustine hates more than his sister being harassed. Sera saw the impenetrable gaze of Augustine that's holding those mundies like he's mentally killing them.

"Augustine. No." Sera said, her tone alarming. "Let them stare, it's not like they're actually doing anything."

"You know what's weird?" Augustine asked.

"Whutty?"

"That Succubus… she still hasn't attacked Simon. I've been to his house about a hundred times-"

"Is that an exaggeration?"

"Back to my story." Augustine said, cancelling anymore replies Sera might say. "Alright, so she still hasn't attacked Simon. And I've been asking Simon questions, like… 'Did a sexy demon lady ever came to your shelter and tried to claw you with their bare hands?' And he said, 'No, if there ever was any, Isabelle would have killed that sexy demon with her right hand tied to her back.' "

Sera giggled at the thought. Augustine shot her an accusing look.

"Hey, I'm just kidding brother!" She said, smiling at him, as she pecks his cheek.

"Fine." Augustine said, resting his arm around her shoulder.

"You know… you don't sound confident and you don't act like that fat headed jerk towards anyone, when you're around me."

"You're the only person I can show my vulnerability to Sera."

"I'm honored." She said, burying her face on her brother's arm.

As soon as they've finished easing themselves, they left the food-joint, being tailed by the three Mundanes that was staring at Sera.

Steve walked with Ebony around the wooded parts of Central Park, both of them talking about their life, Ebony tried not to reveal much, but the temptation was hard to resist. They decided to set-up a picnic area under one of the trees. They were far from the platform that was filled with instruments, such as an electric guitar, a drumset, a bass, and etcetera. Atop the platform hung a row of colorful lights attached to a metal railing. The mass of people started to scream their idol's name.

"ZORRACK! ZORRACK! ZORRACK!" The fans wailed.

"He's really popular, isn't he Steve?"

"Yeah… very. I couldn't imagine him having this many fans." Steve responded, biting onto his cookie that Ebony packed before they left the apartment.

As the piercing dark orange sun sunk back beneath the clouds, Zabel Zorrack came into view. He looked like the usual kind of metal artist, except that he had a little blend of the seventy's with him. His skin was so pale it almost looked like its purple. His body was amazing, the chest's outlines were strong and bold, and his abs' detail was "crunchy", as Steve would put it. He always had a keen for looking at other people's body, he can tell whether it's for the art of modeling or not. Although from afar, he couldn't see Zabel Zorrack's face, his body pretty much stood out; all Steve saw on his head was a crown of purple spiked hair. His tattered tokong-shorts are patched with a small version of the flag of Austrailia.

The people's voice bursts with glee and excitement, beckoning him to play his instruments. He could've felt comfortable, except for the fact that his sensor is picking up something.

"What's the matter Steve?" Ebony asked. "You look disturbed."

"Ebony, do you have any weapons with you?"

"A few, I have a mini-dagger, and a Seraph. Oh, and a small-crossbow."

"Give me the Seraph."

"Alright." Ebony picked her bag for the Seraph, and handed it over to Steve. "Here you go."

Steve examined it carefully. "Now keep your eyes open."

Her red cloak flowed back, as she felt the wind blow on her soft-blonde short-hair. Her electric-blue eyes pierced the area in-defiance, as she carefully searched for her target. For her age, she has one of the most formidable skills in her faction, especially when she starts talking with her bullets, instead of her mouth. With a sudden burst of glee from the crowd, she turned her attention to the platform. There, he stood. Guitar in-hand, skin as pale as Death himself, his human skin might work on regular Mundanes and ignorant Shadowhunters, but her training for the past ten years have given her the skill to sniff these kind of demons.

Her phone blared inside the picnic basket full of weapons, such as guns, knives, the usual military weapons, but with a twist of holy instruments. She picked up the small pink rectangular object that also works like a Sensor. Zabel started playing his demonic tunes, screaming unrecognizable words.

"Hood? Is it starting?" The man on the other-line asked, his accent heavily British.  
"Yes, Mister Lestat. It is starting." Hood grinned, her piranha like-grin. It deformed her adorable child-like smile, making her expression unrecognizably cruel.

"Good. I hope he spills the location of my wife, otherwise I'm going to hunt all of their kind, down."

"Whatever you say… I'm just here to enjoy the blood-bath of this fucking asshole that sent me to the ninth circle of hell."

"Careful, do not harm the Mundanes."

"Sure." She put the phone down, as she stared at the Mundanes from a tree on top of what Hood guessed are lovers. She watched amusedly at the sight of the gullible humans, not realizing their soul is being taken from them, with each strum from Zack. "But I'm not making any promises."


	5. Saviour

"Ebony, stop listening to the song." Steve said, his stone was alarming; they sat under a tree as they listened to the heavy transitions of metal.

"What? But it's good! I always admired this guy! He's an amazing…" Ebony said, Steve started to notice her eyes are starting to shift from the calculative and competitive gaze, to how most people react when someone is telling them a realistic good-news. Ebony held her head; she can feel it throbbing, like some part of her was disappearing. "Oh man… what the hell… who are we listening to?"

"EXACTLY! I think… gosh, I don't know what's up."

They heard a rustle from the bushes directly behind them like someone or something dropped from the tree. And their theory was correct; someone did drop from the dark shade of the tree that's being painted by the evening's ink-black night with the single glow of the white light spilling from the moon, and the twinkling stars. To Steve's surprise, she was just a child in a red-riding hood Halloween costume. But somehow it was weird; her cloak was almost the color of crimson blood that bathed her white long sleeved cocktail dress, and silvery blonde hair.

Ebony was struck by the way she stares at them, and what disturbed her more was the color of the little girl's eyes. It was an intense color of blue that her cornea was close to emanating white.

"Mister… I lost my mommy." The girl's voice was squeaky. "Can you help me find them?"

"Awwww…" Ebony said, kneeling to level herself to the child. "Alright, what do they look like?"

The girl looked down, frowning.

"Gosh, this is a bad-time to tend to a missing girl, now that there's demonic activity going-on." Steve whispered to Ebony. But there was something odd about the girl… something that Steve couldn't point-out.

"Yes, I agree, so for now, let's keep her beside us. Um, what's your name child?" Ebony asked, as she stood.

"Bonnie." The girl replied.

"Alright, Bonnie. You need to stay here, and if the people starts to panic, go to the nearest police station, kay?"

"I'll get the Phospor… stay here alright, Bonnie?"

Bonnie nodded slowly, her hair fluttering.

"Alright, Ebony, but first, glamour and runes, plus grab your weapons. We're going to attract Mister Zorrack's attention."

Steve and Ebony slowly made their way down the crowd, pushing past the hoards of people screaming Zabel Zorrack's name, and the usual crazy fan-lines. As soon as they got to the middle of the crowd, the closest place for him to see them. Ebony felt a pang of stabbing discomfort as Zorrack strummed his guitar.

"Steve, I can feel him… Zabel I mean… I don't think he's a punk Downworlder, or some stupid demon… I think this guy has the power to kill us."

Steve looked across Zorrack, and then turned his eyes on Ebony. "Well, what do you want us to do? Let these people's souls get eaten by some Demon? No, not a chance. I won't allow that. I just won't."

Steve sparked his Phospor to life, as Ebony stared at Steve in-horror. The Phospor glowed luminously around the crowd; the color of white with a vague shade of yellow bathed the crowd. Zabel seemed to have noticed it, because when he turned his eyes to them, he missed a note to cover his eyes. Zabel's skin started to burn….

"STEVE! DON'T! TAKE THE GIRL AND LET'S RUN!" But it was too late, the Phospor exploded when Zabel stared at it with a menacing glance. The crowd's tone of screaming changed from excitement to horror, the people pushing past each other so that they can make a run for it.

All of them running in a sinuous direction around the open area; some of them was mounting the railings, some of them pushing their way to the exit, while some just stared and watched, their expression filled with fear.

"What've I done…" Steve stared at the surrounding area, his face painted in shock.

"Now's not the time for regret, Steve! We need to get these mundanes out of here!" Ebony said as she unsheathed her Seraph. "Ignore Zorrack, and get the mundanes out of here, do you understand?!"

Steve stared at her, before nodding. Ebony ran towards the flock of running mundanes.

He noticed the little girl, Bonnie; slowly making her way to the smoky platform. Zabel was standing there, staring amusedly at Steve, then at Bonnie. She was holding something most peculiar for a little girl….

"She's holding a sub-machine gun…" Steve whispered, as his olive green eyes burn with shock.

"You gunna stop me with that, eh Night Warrior?" Zabel said, his Australian accent was heavy. There was something sexy about his voice, but at the same time it felt like poison trickled his brain as Zabel's voice played through his head.

Bonnie responded with a spine-chilling grin, as her grip tightened around the gun. She passed Steve… there was something frightening about her. She wasn't the same little girl that he and Ebony found. She wasn't a scared little girl… but something forced Steve to get out of her way, as she stared at him with her burning blue eyes, and dark pulsing veins that made her indescribably pale. Bonnie didn't turn to look at him; instead she pointed the gun at Zabel as he strummed his guitar.

Violet fire exploded from the ground, the sound of guitar blared with rhythmic notes and explosive transitions, engulfing Zabel's body; the fire was in the shape of sphere. Steve felt something wrong with the fire, as if it came from the pit of hell. As soon as the purple fire subsided, Bonnie started shooting at Zabel's direction.

Steve's eyes widened as he saw the rock-artist deform into a skeletal-like creature, his body still had the pale-flesh he wore earlier, but the huge gaping mouth from his chest to his stomach, circled with sharp teeth was the most noticeable thing, aside from his skull formed face, twelve-inch bony fingers, and sharp pointed talons lie where his nails were.

"Not much of a challenge, eh Night Warrior?" Zabel said, avoiding the bullets as he ran to Bonnie. His speed was unquestionably faster than a Shadowhunter's, he could easily kill Bonnie, he could- Steve was enthralled to see her avoiding his blows. His arms were extending like a rubber-band, as he tried to punch Bonnie, but she just shrugged him-off, and regarded him with a blow on his head with her picnic basket.

Steve turned his fearful eyes to Ebony. She was assisting the mundanes in escaping by cutting the railing with her blade. She drew a rune of speed on her arm, and glamour. Steve wasn't sure what kind of illusion were the mundane seeing, but he was pretty sure that Ebony was driving them in-fear, because the crowd kept yelling "SLENDER!"

Steve ran towards Ebony, Speed rune disappearing from his body. He just wished Augustine was here, not that he'd know what to do, but they always found a way to get out of sticky situations. "Ebony! EBONY!"

Ebony turned to him; the mundanes were getting lesser and lesser by the minute, as Ebony used her "slender"-technique. "What is it-" Ebony turned her attention to the middle, where Bonnie and Zorrack were having their duel. "WHAT THE HELL?! IS THAT KID A SHADOWHUNTER?!"

"I'm not sure. She just pulled out some guns from that little basket of her and started shooting!"

"Oh my-"

At Ebony's mid-sentence, the greater demon struck Bonnie, causing her to ricochet to Steve. She managed to knock him off his feet, pain searing in his back. Steve wondered what kind of steroids she was in, because of the fact that she weigh like hundred pound barbell.

"Ugghhh…" Steve said. "That hurt…"

"STEVE!" Ebony exclaimed loudly. She then drew her Seraph from its sheath then lunged at the demon.

"HAHAHA! Silly Nephilims." He said, as he avoided her moves smoothly, his body moving sinuously. "You cannot defeat me!" He extended his fist to punch Ebony, but missed, the side of his fist smoothing her cheek as she evade the attack.

"HA!" Ebony yelled, aiming at the mouth with her Seraph-

With a flick of his arm, Zabel's arm extended into an impossible length, bashing her face hard. Ebony's limp body glided on the open-field like a smooth stone tossed at the ocean, which reminded Steve of Disney's Hercules, she struck one of the trees with her back. He couldn't move, his fear immobilized his body. Augustine would really be big of a help right now. Steve held Bonnie around his arms, brushing her blonde locks with his hand.

"Cocky little Nephilim you got there, eh? Such a skilled warrior, but such a sloppy fighter. Always fighting with her eyes closed." Zabel said. "Ah! I fear not much of you Nephilims –the younger ones at least-know about the Darkstalkers?"

Steve could only stare at him with his fearful green-eyes, his arms wrapped tightly around Bonnie as Zabel slowly made his way to him.

Zabel walked to them slowly, his sockets slowly protruding small red dots that glowed eerily around his dark, empty sockets. "Well, let me explain. The Darkstalkers are the most notorious Greater Demons the Clave has ever faced. They had no idea how to tie us back to our demonic dimension, because we keep coming back and back and back, killing more and more of your kind." He was in-front of Steve now, his dark sockets… _wait_, Steve thought, _those aren't sockets… they're his eyeballs, and the red glowing thing…_

"Yes, this is my pupil, the red glowing sphere that is inside of what you thought was my socket. OH I forgot to tell you my name… LORD RAPTOR, it is. The God of Metal." He said, grinning, his long tongue elongated from his mouth. His gaze intensified by the light of his reddening eyes. He punched Steve painfully where his right arm was injured by the stupid Succubus.

"But how did you-" He fell to the grass, face-down, trembling while holding Bonnie underneath him.

"But of course, that was our label, but it doesn't mean we're as one. Morrigan Aensland and Dmitri Maximoff -"

"I HATE TO INTERRUPT YOUR HISTORY LESSON, BUT I THINK YOU'VE OVERSTAYED YOUR WELCOME!" A dark shadowy figure emerged from the side, knocking the Greater Demon sideways. Lord Raptor collapsed to the ground.

His hair was still the same strawberry blonde color, it looked like slightly trimmed from this angle, but Steve knows he'll chop his arms off first before he'd get a haircut. The dark coat which is his gear was decorated by his overlaying muscles that seeped through. His blue eyes still proud as ever with unkind smirk that lined his mouth, Augustine looked a little flushed with worry, anger, and relief as he saw Steve. Augustine helped him stand up.

"Where were you-" Augustine started, but got lost at midsentence, as the Greater Demon regained consciousness. "Alright, nevermind, right now, we have to take that thing down." He pointed at Lord Raptor.

"Right." Steve said. "I missed you too Augustine."

"Never mind the sappy reunion for now! I will abide by your plans, whatever it is."

"Ummm…"

"You don't have any, don't you?"

"Geeze!" Steve said, slightly annoyed. "I would get a move on if I did, right?"

Augustine noticed after a few seconds delay that Steve was holding a small child around his arms. "Uhhh…"

"Yeah, she's a Shadowhunter, I think."

"Right. How about…" He was about to point at Ebony that lay on the far-side of the open-field.

"She's a Shadowhunter. You know…"

"Highsmith." Augustine said.

"Yeah."

Lord Raptor was slowly standing, it puzzled Steve. How can Augustine knock a Greater Demon for that long? Anyway, that doesn't seem important right now, what's important right now is that Lord Raptor is now fully up.

"Thought you could play one on me, huh Nephi-" He got stuck at mid-sentence, as he looked at Augustine. There was a hint of betrayal as he stared hard at him, as if examining him. For a milli-second, Steve thought his skeletal face frowned, but that quickly changed to spite, as he balled his fist and raised his arms at shoulder level.

"Are you ready my dearest friend?" Augustine said, raising his rapier, and handing Steve his quiver of silver pikes. Steve was always used to weapons that are slow to cast, because Augustine always served as his speedy distraction. "Now this is no ordinary demon, we may or may not have to carve our way through his thick stupid skull."

"Oh don't worry, I'm ready..." Steve replied, taking the sword from his hand. "I'm always ready. So long as you are here." He said, staring at Lord Raptor, and unto the darkening clouds. "Je promets de rester à vos côtés, à travers bien et le mal,"

"l'enfer et le ciel" (Note: This means "I promise to stay by your side through good and evil, through heaven and hell." ) Augustine finished, smiling. They both let out a battle cry, Augustine rushing towards the Greater Demon, weapons at hand. But as soon as he got near, while Steve tried to cover Bonnie and find a comfortable position to throw the pike, about ten paces, lightning blasted from the sky, creating a Silhoutte around Raptor that looked like a monster with a wide gaping mouth and dark sockets. "I'll teach you to mess with Lord Raptor, little bitches!"

Raptor pointed directly at Steve—but Steve was a quick thinker, before Raptor could even blast that lightning from his finger tips, he readied his footing to duck. He did as he planned, successfully. But there was something wrong with the presence of his lightning, he feel so drawn to the mystical blue light of the—

"DON'T STARE AT THE LIGHTNING! IT'LL SUCK YOUR SOUL DRY!" Augustine yelled from across the field, looking for an opening or a blind spot. "Oh fuck it all." He grabbed a dagger from his coat, and threw it at the Greater Demon. At the touch of the blade on the demon's chest, it went frantic, holding his chest, screaming names—

Raptor exploded, a mixture of blue intense sinuous lines, dancing along with his ichor. The boys ricocheted to the far side of the open field where Ebony lay still.

"Nice shot, I told you... my looks were sharp." Augustine yelled to the bushes on the far-side, Steve noticed that there was a single-arrow, on the ground where Lord Raptor was. "Anyway... I have to tell you something, we need to portal to London, there has been a disturbance..."

"—in the force?" Steve continued, smiling. His head throbbing like a beating heart.

"No you twat." Augustine said, but before he could continue talking, Steve blacked out.


	6. The Murderer

Steve held his pounding head; he woke up in a large room, lined with canopy beds with white curtains that shimmered as the light from the windows, parallel to the beds, touched it. He felt a strange feeling, as if he time traveled, the room looked ancient in the context of medieval days, but everything was neat, the floor as spotless as God's angels. The stone walls looked orderly, not just a series of uneven rocks and mortar, but they were lined perfectly. His sleeveless gear was hanged on the polished-wood coat hanger, just next to the wooden double doors that leads out.

Steve was following the narrow corridor, which was brightly lit by the lined torches on the walls, and beside the torches, were wooden doors with small bars. It looked more like a prison to Steve, rather than a safe-house, which reminded him. _Where am I? How did I get here? What—_He then remembered that he fought a Greater Demon, and was kidnapped by a man named Matthew Lestat. A sharp and searing pain pierced her arm, he grabbed his arm and then fumbled for his Stele, but it wasn't in his pocket.

"Your equipment is in the weapon's room. You can get it after I patch your arm up." A man from behind said, his voice was low as a bass, but it sounded melodic with his heavy French accent. Steve turned to face him. "Come on, I'll get you fixed. My name is Ermenegilde, by the way. But you can call me Gil."

It's—Steve suddenly lost it, he remembered who this guy was, but he suddenly forgot, like the memory was taken from him. His hair was dark as the starless night sky, his facial features were rough as if to impose strength, and his jaw-line was tightly compressed. Gil wore a black tank-top that bulky muscles. He looked like was going to a beach with his orange Hawaiian shorts.

Steve kept his gaze still, trying to remember who Gil was… but he failed, although there is something that compelled him as Gil went to Steve. There was something magnificent about that dark-hair, those yellow eyes that pierced Steve's memory….

"Uhhh… hallo? Are you there?" Gil said, Steve didn't realize his stare was running from top to bottom.

"Oui… je suis désolé." Steve said, it's the first time he spoke French, once again, ever since he first got to Manhattan Institute. He was a little bashful.

"Ah, a French man?" Gil said.

Steve nodded.

"Then I don't have to speak this god-awful language." Gil said in-French.

Steve could only laugh at his remark.

Gil took Steve back inside the infirmary. Steve sat on the bed he slept on, while Gil was rummaging the medicine cabinet next to his bed.

[The conversation below will be in-French.]

"Ah, here it is." Gil said. "Do you want some fresh-air?"

"Where are we?" Steve responded, his grass-green eyes resting on him.

"Alexandra palace, the abandoned theater in London? It used to serve as Haven, it still us until now. We're below the place, since we can't step into holy ground." Gil replied, pulling Steve's sleeve up. This sent a chill down his spine, his touch was so familiar. Steve didn't notice that his arm was bandaged. At the sight of Gil, he could actually smell the hot pancakes that his mother cooked when he was young, early on the morning with a da—again he lost the memory, like an old photograph that had once its beauty.

"Wait, what is this—can you explain to me what's going-on right now?"

"Sure." Gil said, as he took the tapes and bandages off. "Well, number one, Mister Lestat wants to know what's going-on. So he asked Augustine Conharme to know what the heck just happened."

"So how did we get here?" Steve said. "And, please, continue with your story."

"Ah! You flied here using the carriage, it didn't take long. Old Smoke and Fire are fast anyways. Anyways, he just wants to know what happened to the High Warlock of Brooklyn, Magnus Bane."

"He went on vacation, his roommate, the girl with brown hair—"

"I know." Gil responded. "The brown-hair girl with the loud mouth and annoying Filipina accent, who can smoke the pipe of a car?"

Steve smirked. "That's the one. Speaking of which, where is she? Where are my friends?"

"Downstairs, waiting for you." He said. "Well that's what she said too. But, the Warlock was found dead in his apartment last two days ago. Next to his dead body, Mister Lestat's name was written in-blood… and there was something odd when we found Magnus' body."

"What? I've been here for two days?" Steve asked, skeptic.

"Yes, apparently. And as for the Warlock, he was hanged, and his stomach was cut open." Gil replied, as if he's trying to remove the image from his head. He took a small bottle that contained red liquid, and poured it on a rag; wiping Steve's scar gently.

"_Cut _open?"

"Oui… when we found him… ah, it's just so hard to describe." Gil answered, he tried to say it languidly.

"That reminds me of Judas, from the Divine Comedy. When the narrator found him in-hell, his stomach was cut open as he was hanged on a tree."

"Well, I'm not really the reading type…." He said, finishing Steve's newly placed bandages over the mended wounds.

"You're afraid of blood… aren't you?" Steve said, his eyes glistening as he waited for the answer.

"Well, I don't believe that's any of your business." Gil responded, his tone was cold and uninviting as if Gil was replaced by a stone statue. But, Steve saw something in his eyes. It was dilated as if he was about to cry, his lids were slightly watery. "Come on, Mister Lestat would like to see you."

"Alright…" Steve said, getting up from his bed.

Steve followed him in silence around the creamy walled hallway. There were beams of wood on the high ceiling to support the ancient tapestry, some of them were the many battles of King Arthur, and some of them were Greek Heroes battling monsters. Light poured from the mullioned windows at their left.

Steve noticed that each time they passed wide double doors from time to time. Finally, Gil stopped in-front of a set of huge double doors. He opened it to a wide, palatial room with high ceilings, light poured like milk from the round window just above them; it had a beautiful red carpet that almost looked like blood. The carpet matched perfectly with the smooth and polished wooden walls. On the side of the walls, parallel to each other were antique armor-sets. And over the very back, was a platform, red curtains drawn behind them.

Steve located his friends, seated on a round table, just in the middle. The place looked like an old theatre box that has been abandoned, and renovated by its new owner. He could already hear Ebony's loud mouth from across the room, Steve just couldn't identify whether it's useless information, or something that could contribute to the investigation. Steve slowly walked with Gil on the way to the table.

"Well, mister Lestat, why the heck would I kill my own roommate?!" Ebony demanded, her brown hair flared as did her eyes as she spoke the words foreign to respect or gentleness.

"Now, now dear, I did not say that you have killed Magnus Bane." The slender man seated across Ebony spoke, his accent was heavily British. "However, you are under investigation, because you are the last person Magnus has tal-"

"Excuse me Lestat, before you jump into anymore conclusions that I-" Ebony's eyes wandered as she talked—then she saw Steve. "STEEEEEVE!" She half-screamed, half-squealed. She ran to him like a marathon competitor, and threw her arms around him.

"Well," A familiar voice said, it came from the side. "I didn't think you'd be alive." Steve turned as Augustine appeared, smiling his devilishly handsome grin.

Steve smiled at them both, and started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Ebony said, as she pulled away.

"You guys… it's just funny how people miss-out on having friends that are as close as your family." Steve cleared his throat. "Even though you two aren't acquainted yet."

"Oh! We did some acquainting before, if you know what I mean." Ebony said suggestively.

"Yeah." Augustine said. "Remember the time I went to Manila Institute last two years, and I didn't want to talk about it?"

Steve arched a brow. "Yeah…"

"Well, I met this little mutant." He jabbed a thumb at Ebony's direction. "We fell in-love, we danced, we got merry. But then, I realized our love story was short-lived, because like all the stereotypical women, Ebony was looking for something more, and sadly… I wasn't enough. But it's all good now, of course."

"Truth be told, he tried to unstrap my bra while we were making out… such a pervert who objectifies women… such a beautiful face, such a waste." Ebony said, trying to sound disappointed.

"I thought you wanted to do it because of the way you kissed me."

"Oh, dear Augustine Conharme, I'm so sorry I'm not the slut you expected me to be." Though her tone sounded amused, Augustine felt a twist of poison sheathed in her voice.

Augustine turned to Steve this time, obviously stunned by her reply. "How are you Parabatai?"

"Did they manage to find what made your arm like a useless brick?" Ebony chided amusedly. Steve looked offended, Augustine smirked. "Sorry, that was mean."

"Yeah… demon poison. I should have expected. I think the Succubus was the one that inflicted it on me." Steve responded, rubbing his bruise gingerly.

"How did she do that?" Augustine asked, raising his brows.

"Well, her wings changed into giant whips that were pointed like a spear."

"_Whips?" _

"Yeah, whips… black leathery whips."

Augustine whistled, but was silenced midway as Ebony stepped at his foot like hammer slamming on a nail.

"OUCH!" Augustine yelped.

"Ouuhhh…" Ebony said, putting her middle finger atop her lip, like a sarcastic scolded child. "Oh, me so sorry, Ebony no do no bad if big beefy blonde boy stop antagonizing the feminine society."

"Anyway!" Steve started. "Where is Sera?"

"Sent her to London Institute. We need a hell of help." Augustine smiled.

The slender man who sat across Ebony earlier was suddenly in-front of them. The first thing that Steve noticed is that his nape-long-hair is so fluffy, to the point that he thought there was a cat on his head at first glance. His olive skin defined his dark eyes that seemed like endless pits. His Frock coat atop the white button-down polo made him look both haunting and dashing. He smiled at Steve and held out his hand. "My name is Matthew Lestat, and I'd like to ask you a few questions."


	7. The Curse

"Moon River, wider than a mile..." The blonde hair little girl was on the long terrace just outside, leaning on the stone railings as she stared dreamily at the moon. "I'm crossing you in style one day. Ohhhh… dream maker, you heart breaker… wherever you're going… I'm going away." She smiled as she sang the lyrics. Bonnie was gravely reminded of her grandmother... her brother... tears rolled down her eyes as she imagined them.

A thudding noise came from the eloquently framed doorway. It was the blonde boy that looked like the gold Sonic the Hedgehog. There was something dazzling about him under the moon, Bonnie thought. His handsome face was illuminated by the moon's light, which made him glow like some kind of entity. His blue eyes rested on her, his lip curving onto smile that was both inviting and warm.

"Hello..." Bonnie said. "What brings you out here... uhhmmm..."

"Augustine, my name is Augustine Conharme." Augustine replied, as he leaned his back on the railing, he was next to her.

"Yes, Augustine... what brings you here?" Bonnie asked, her voice was as soft as cotton.

"I just came for a little air. Fancy seeing you here... Bonnie, right?"

"Yes, my name is Bonnie." She gave him a sad smile, her short her flowed the same pattern as the wind.

Augustine looked skeptic, as if he'd seen something terribly wrong.

"I know... I'm a monster." Bonnie said. "I'm supposed to be dead, but thanks to Mister Lestat... I'm alright... well, it should be the Clave I should be thanking, but Mister Lestat has been my father for almost a year, and he's been a good father to me."

"Really? What's your story? What got you here in the first place?"

Again, she gave him a sad smile as a way of responding. "I think it's better if you don't know."

Augustine smiled at her, his white teeth glistening like the stars as the moonlight touched it.

"When I was a boy, my father hated me." He said. "The only living creature in my family that doesn't look down on me disdainfully is my sister, Sera. You know her right?"

"The blonde girl that looks like you?" She asked, her eyes sparked with amusement.

"Exactamundo, the blonde that looks exactly like me. Well, she was the one that encouraged me to keep up my training, the one that was there for me when no one was." He motioned to his pocket, staring at the moon with his delicate blue eyes. He plucked out a wand-like object; the bottom of it had the symbol of a heart. "This was Sera's gift to me on my twelfth birthday." His eyes sparkled animating both sadness and joy in his expression. "Father discouraged her from giving me such a wonderful instrument. He said that it wasn't fit for a weak Shadowhunter like me. He wasn't really physically abusing me, but the verbal abuse from him, and his side of the family tormented me for years." A faint tear-drop rolled down his face.

"So, long story short, father hated my guts in whatever I do. So, he cast me out of the Institute in-London, and he brought me to Idris. He said 'Perhaps spending time without your mother and sister will soften that stone-hard head of yours.' So I did... I went to Idris. At the first three nights I started crying, out-loud in my dormitory. Most of the children will laugh at me, and tell me 'AUGUSTINE STILL SUCKS HIS MOTHER'S BREAST! AUGUSTINE IS AN OUTCAST... SIGNED BY HIS FATHER!' " He spat the words bitterly, as if it's been lumped in his heart all this time. "Until one time, when this big, beefy boy was about to punch me for standing up to him... another boy stood in-front of the bully...

'I'm not afraid of you, no matter how big you are. I'm not going to allow you to hurt him...' He said. At that moment I was in a state of shock... I didn't know what to say or do... so I stood beside him. And you know what?"

Bonnie smiled lightly, "What?"

"From that moment on, we became invincible. Every time Steve and I walk down the corridor, some of the students stare at us in-awe, and sometimes in disgust. You see, Steve and I became the Alpha and the Omega after this demon-hunting trial that required us to go beyond the wards." He laughed gently. "Some of our teachers hated me for sleeping in-class like Demonology, and Steve would often tell the teacher 'He was studying in his dream.' The teacher then would punish us for misbehaving. He was always the goody-two shoes, Steve I mean. But no matter what happens, he always takes the fall with me." He moved in-front of her, and bowed gracefully. "And the rest is history."

Bonnie clapped at his performance. "Bravo! Bravo!" She said, smiling widely. "but it's kind of weird telling that to a stranger, isn't it?"

"Well, I try not to be stranger to everyone! I'm the kind of person that wants to be known!"

"It's getting hard to believe you were bullied."

"And why do you think that?"

She poked his stomach, smiling at his direction gingerly. "Because you act so happy and giddy, and also, I noticed in your eyes that you've accomplished something worthwhile."

"Steve is not an accomplishment, he is my saving grace."

"And why would you use the word 'grace'?" Bonnie arched a brow.

"Because I did not deserve him." Augustine said. "Well, it's getting late. I think I should be going, is that alright young lady?"

"Yes my good sir."

"Good night then." Augustine seized the knob—

"Hey, Augustine." Bonnie said, before Augustine could go inside. "By any chance... are you and Steve... kind of..."

Augustine immediately got the question and started laugh loudly. "Oh my god, child." He said, wiping a tear-drop from his eye. "No, Steve and I aren't dating. Parabatais are forbidden to feel that kind of intimacy for each other... but, now that you mentioned it, Steve and I do make a good couple."

It was Bonnie's turn to laugh.

The tales of Knights and Maidens amused Ebony; it reminded her of her mother. A Knight in Shining armor that longed for a princess who was shrouded behind the walls of an impenetrable castle, but they had something that overpowers the shadow of these walls: their love. The princess was against her father's will, of being entrapped until a suitor for her arrives, so one night, the Knight came in a dazzling white steed, pummeling everyone with his bright sword that gleamed at the touch of the moonlight. In the end, the King gave-in and allowed them to get married.

But not all Fairy Tales ended in happily ever after. After so many years, the Princess regretted her husband's actions. Abusing her and the daughter he had, to the point that the princess had an affair with another man who was married, so the two of them ran-away. But the Princess realized what she had done to her daughter; she realized that it was wrong for her daughter to suffer at the hands of the Knight. So she hanged herself...

Ebony smirked as she closed the book wrapped around her hands, gazing steadily at the night's sky. "The Princess... she reminds me of my mother." She sat on one of the couches inside the large theatre room, next to the shelves of books.

"I can't believe you read an amazingly traumatizing book." Steve smiled as he materialized from the side, the moon's beam casting a luminescent glow on him, the hard lines of his jaw and muscles was outlined in incredible detail; she would have never thought that Steve was kind and gentle, seeing as he looks like a vicious warrior. But when she got to know him, he acted and looked more like a Saint.

She smiled, "Well, there are no cars or motorcycles I can fix here, ain't there?"

"Yeah..." Steve said, flopping next to her.

"What did Lestat say?"

"Well, he only said that he needs our testimony regarding the death Magnus, and that the Haven isn't keeping any notorious outcasts of the Clave. We didn't even go to his office." He said, scratching his head gingerly.

"Hm?"

"The guy lost his wife... I mean, she got kidnapped. And, there aren't much people here that can testify for him because his 'Children' were looking for Miss Jane Wilder-Lestat, his wife." Steve said sympathetically. "I feel sad for him."

"Ohhh..." Ebony replied. "Well... that is kind of sad."

"But you know what?" Steve said, as he leaned face to her ear, "I need to make investigations of my own."

"So you're saying you distrust Lestat?"

"Yes, and technically he's a suspect. So, I'm going to have to know what his 'children' are doing, and what Lestat himself is doing. He could be telling just half the truth you know. Vampires aren't feys."

"How do you know that Lestat did bring himself to kill... you know... Magnus?" Ebony asked, she was amazed by Steve's criticism and his observant demeanor.

"I'm not saying he did do it, but rather, I'm placing him under suspicion." Steve said. "Because you may never know who did it. Like those cliché detective movies wherein a group of rich aristocrats are gathered in party, then the lights went off and poof, someone is there, lying on the floor drenched in a pool of their ownblood. After so many investigations, clues, and any of the like, the butler did it all along. And now the butler is riding a horse on the way to a merrier life, or so he thought." Steve cleared his throat.

"That's what I'm avoiding, that's the mistake that those movies do, and most Shadowhunters do. Leaving anyone out because of their understanding that a man is incapable of such horrors, but let me tell you this, the second sin that man committed was murder, the first be disobedience. So that means... we have the blood of a murderer, it's not impossible for us to kill, because it was passed down by our ancestors."

Ebony clapped her hands lightly. "Wow, I don't believe that God cares, but you're a convincing speaker. So where did you get this information if you and Lestat didn't do much talking?" Ebony set the book down the coffee table.

"Well, overheard a few gossips and... charisma, I didn't have it before, not until I met Augustine Conharme." Steve said as he smiled. "You see, we were the most invincible duo during our time in Idris. It's like he's the heart, and I'm the mind, we can't live without each other."

Ebony curled her lip into a smile. "You're a really great friend... to be honest, my impression is that you and Augustine are possibly dating."

"Nahhh... but we do look great as a couple."

Ebony laughed in a un-lady-like manner. "You're funny."

Steve shrugged. "Hey, Eb, I'm sleepy... I'm going to my room. Night?"

"Ummm... can I sleep next to you?" Ebony asked.

"Why?" Steve said, his green eyes sparked with amusement. "I thought you hated bumping your head on my jaw, or the simple act of accidentally hugging me."

Ebony couldn't decide whether to shake her head, or to nod in agreement.

"Come on Ebony. It's okay; I won't rape you like Augustine tried." He said, smiling at her reassuringly.

She held out his hand, and covered her eyes with a hanky. "I want to know if I can trust you."

Steve then smiled, and started to pull her gently, past the huge door, walking down the long and high corridor. She looks so peaceful, not like the feral snake that everyone has to deal with, but a sheep that wills herself to follow her shepherd. This Ebony was different from the one that he met in Magnus Bane's apartment; she didn't even jibe or said something funny as they walked past the wooden doors of his room. It's like Ebony was reborn, spiritually.

"We're here." Steve whispered, almost audibly. Ebony then slowly opened her eyes to a simple flagstone wall room, with wooden floorboards. The room was clean; the blankets neatly folded atop the pillows, the bed looked like a square puff of cloud covered in white linen, the books were neatly lined, all except for the scattered papers on the desk at the corner of the room.

She slumped on the bed, sighing in relief. "Man, I'm need of sleep." Ebony said, and then she patted the side of her bed. "Stevey, get over here... I ish in need of a hug."

Steve did as he was told, wrapping his arms around her like a giant pillow. There was a long silence.

"Steve, have you ever been in-love?" Ebony asked, the question came out of nowhere for Steve.

"Hmmm... have I been in-love. If in the context of relationships is what you're pertaining to, then no... but if in the context of friendship, then... I love Augustine... and I love my family. Oh, and my friends!"

Ebony smiled, sadly. It felt like she wanted to say something, but has been deprived of freely expressing her feelings. Steve looked at her. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Nothing..." She said, and then a spark of excitement dilated her blue eyes. "I just want to tell you that I have a crush on someone, again." She said, poking his cheek.

"Really? Who? Am I allowed to know?"

"Not yet, of course. But I will tell you... in-time!" She laughed like an evil villain from a corny cartoon show. Suddenly, her expression softened into a sympathetic expression, as if she's been drained of her energy. "Hey, Steven." She said, suddenly serious. "Now that we're well acquainted, will you tell me... why you're... ummm... how come Magnus took so long in-healing you, and why were you in those heaps of garbage when I first saw you?"

"Simple." He said. "I have a curse you see."

"What is that?" Ebony asked, holding his face.

Steve stared at her, before he pulled away from her grip, and stood up, near the luminescent light that peered through the window. He then breathed, in and out, and pulled his shirt off. Steve showed the tattoo of a pair of black feathered wings just behind him, its detail was amazing, it almost looked real.

"If you're thinking they're tattoos," Steve started. "You're wrong, those are runes. These runes contain my curse. It's kind of like the miracle drug of the mundanes..."

"So you're telling me... you have a curse that has the same symptoms as cancer?" Ebony gasped. "Is that—"

"No." Steve cut her off. "It's not demon pox. My parents were just as surprised as you were, because I was born with feathery wings. But unlike the white color of the lower ranks, or the golden ones like the Seraphic Angels, I have dark ones. It's unexplained how I got these. I guess... my parents were punished by God himself."

"Why?" Ebony said softly.

"Well, my father... he didn't want to be a warrior. So instead, he became an archivist."

Ebony opened her mouth, as if to say something, but Steve gave her the "let me finish" look. "He wasn't a Silent Brother, he just sorted the papers and records in-Idris. One day, he got really tired of his work... so he traveled with my mom, living in the mundane world. They set-off to the Holy Land, to look for the arc of the covenant... the good news, they found it... the bad news... well... let's just say dad did something that clearly... well you get the point." Steve said, then his hard expression softened again. "Sorry Eb, I'm really not comfortable talking about my curse..."

Ebony stood from the bed, and hugged him, close enough for her to hear his heartbeats. Steve was taller than her by inches. He hugged back, caressing her hair gently, wrapping his fingers around the soft cluster of her dark hair.

"What's wrong?" Steve said audibly. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No wonder Magnus won't let you go back alone." She looked at him, her eyes glistened, faint tear-drops dripped "No, it's just not fair. Are you dying—." Before he could answer, Steve collapsed to the floor, screaming loudly, his head throbbing as if his heart jumped into his brain. For a brief moment he saw Ebony's face painted with horror, Augustine opening the door, and then blackness shrouded his sight.


	8. The Book of Secrets

_Steve was walking down a street full of mundanes, talking, laughing, nothing that he has seen in the actual world, he's never seen these mundane act like they're one. The golden streets and the choir dressed in white linen seemed all too familiar to Steve, yet felt so foreign. Then a man with wings as white as cotton appeared next to him, patting his arm. He felt enjoyment, he liked talking to this fellow angel of his, but then, suddenly... the scenery changed. The golden city was burning, the choirs sang choruses of loud wails that can be heard in hell, then—_

Steve woke with the start, his hair plastered by cold sweat to his forehead. He panted so hard that he could feel his lungs throbbing. He felt an unbearable stabbing pain in his back. There it is again, his curse slowly sucking his existence. Steve suddenly wished he had cancer instead of this, at least cancer could be cured, but this is curse can't even be healed by a professional Warlock who heals demon pox for breakfast.

He was in his room, the first thing he saw was a tall and slender man seated on a stool, crossed legged while reading a book, just by his cupboard.

"Ah, so you're awake." Lestat said, his voice neutral. "How are you doing, Steve?"

"Um fine. Thank you Miste—"

Lestat waved his hand modestly, "Matthew. Please, call me Matthew."

"Matthew... alright, Matthew." Steve said as he squeezed his eyes shut, and opened them again. "What happene—"

"Well, your curse, according to Miss Highsmith, attacked you."

"Oh right... now I remember." Steve dazed outside. "Where is Ebony?"

"Just outside, with Gil." Matthew jabbed his finger out, his eyes didn't waver from the book.

Steve stared at him incredulously, as if he's never seen a vampire before.

"Can I help you?" Matthew asked, his eyes still glued to the book.

"Ummm... I've never encountered a vampire like you before. You have the tranquility of an angel, but the strength of a demon."

"That's a very nice metaphor, Steve."

"Yeah..."

"I'd like to ask you a favor, Steve." Matthew said, closing his book. He moved towards the side of his bed, the way he moved was spider-like, peaceful but cunning, as if he's going to wrap you up in his little cocoon and feed you to his babies. But he didn't, he just stared at him.

"Go ahead, Matthew." Steve said dismissively, he sat at the edge of the bed.

"I'd like to know about the three murders that are accused or rather, pinned on me and a Succubus." He said, he tried to make his tone neutral, but Steve felt the swelling pain in his voice.

"Don't worry; your wife isn't one of them, although one of them was a vampire and the other a werewolf. I know, I checked the names of the dead Downworlders. But something was rather peculiar about their murder, in-which we couldn't make the other Downworlders a suspect, due to the fact that it's highly unlikely that it's them. But, the Fey can be accused since they have a taste for that kind of macabre things, but when we went into the Seelie Court, the Queen ultimately said that it wasn't one of her children, or herself."

"Very well..." there was a resounding relief in his voice. "Why is their pattern of murders peculiar?"

"Their hearts were taken-off, and as I've heard from Gil, Magnus Bane's blood was drained dry."

"Yes, it appears to me that the killer really pinned the blame on me." Matthew said, suddenly the dangerous aura of a bloodsucker was back in his composure. "I can't even get out of this place, the Clave made sure I can't by putting a curse on me, the same curse they placed on Hodge Starkweather. Anyway, what of the Nephilim he or she killed? Was he drained of blood?"

"No... his heart was removed, but still intact with the veins. So it was just hanging..." Steve said, Lestat smirked. "Hey, that wasn't a joke."

"I know, but the last sentence almost made me giggle."

"I'm thinking..."

"About what?"

"Why don't you report to the Clave about your wife's disappearance? I mean, she's been gone for about six months, it should be handled by the Clave now."

"The business of the Clave is not of the Night Children, or to us... whatever we are. What they try to protect are humans, mundanes. But mostly, they only try to protect themselves."

"True... what do you mean by 'whatever we are'?"

"Hasn't anyone told you about this Organization? I thought that Gil had it covered." Matthew asked.

"Well, I thought this was a Haven. And no, Gil didn't say much. He just said this was a Haven."

"Ohhh... I see. Well, you could say that this is a safe Haven..." Matthew said, dazing out the sky. "But this is also a place for creatures that the Clave have no disposal of, powerful creatures."

"Like?"

Matthew sighed, "Most of the people here are either mundanes with exceptional powers and skills, or downworlders that fit into their own category."

"Ohhh... really?"

"Yes, take Bonnie, for example... she has schizophrenia all because she has an inner demon, literally. Her parents were warlocks who decided to infuse demon blood in her; I'm actually surprised she's still alive. Anyway, they used the blood of the Greater Demon, or Darkstalker, Lord Raptor. The one you faced four days ago." Matthew said.

"So, that's why she was kind of... wild."

"Indeed, but the girl is sweet and kind, but her other side... not so much. Now, I shall attend to my business. Thank you for the wonderful chat."

He stood up, and walked soundlessly to the door, but before he left he said. "If you find the killer, would you ask him if he or she has any information about my wife?"

"Yes... I will." Steve smiled.

Matthew then closed the door, and left. There was something in his eyes that Steve saw, something so foreign to vampires: vulnerability.

Ebony heard the soft clanging, coming from a room that was behind the big curtains, around one of the once dressing rooms. The noise had the soft, soothing sound of the piano, but somehow it was different to her. She gently pushed the door open. The room was wide; its walls were the color of white pastels, paintings hung parallel to each other. A grand piano stood in the middle, on a round platform, but no one was playing it. Seated on a small stool, gazing at the round windows above, while playing a harp was a man with broad shoulders and a statuesque body, his dark hair was neatly cut, he played so well that Ebony was taken aback. For the past four days, Gil was nothing but bitter and mean to her, he wouldn't even talk to her when there were things to discuss.

She silently walked over to him, watching the way his big beefy arms curl and flow through the thin strings of the harp—

"Ebony, what are you doing here?" He turned to her, his gaze was as hard as ever, as if his heart is made of an unbreakable material. She wondered how Steve dealt with this guy the first time they met.

"Uh—uh. I... was just admiring this room! I haven't seen it before!" She laughed nervously. He stopped playing.

"Oh, I see." He picked up a white cloth, and wrapped it around the harp. "Well, I'm going."

"Hey! You don't have to be an ass every time! And I came here because what you were playing... that was honestly beautiful."

"And sadly, you are nothing like my song."

"AHA! A smart-ass, huh?" Ebony jabbed back. "You pray and thank God I have nothing to tell you... what's your favorite food?"

"You seriously have no life." He strode towards the exit.

"Would it hurt you to not be an ass?"

He closed the door behind him, obviously pissed by Ebony. Then, she saw something peculiar near the window seat... a copy of the Inferno. She sat on the window seat, propped the book open, and started reading. After pages and pages... something fell down from the book, something...—

She gasped, and then quickly ran to Steve.

As soon as the sky darkened on the balcony, Bonnie gazed at the thousands—millions—of beautiful lights that flickered across the dark-blue sky. There was no sign of the moon tonight, but the stars were enough comfort to her. She sat on the small round table, seated to a small chair, while drinking tea. She was in the same balcony where she first met—The door creaked open, a boy with rusty blonde hair entered: Augustine. He was carrying a small package in his hand.

"Your sister... she's really pretty..." Bonnie said, sipping at her tea.

"Yeah, I know... like her brother." He said, smiling at her.

"What's that?" Bonnie laughed, and then pointed at the small pink package he was carrying.

"I heard from Mister Lestat that it's someone's birthday!"

"Oh really?!" She said, taking the package from Augustine. Bonnie opened it gently.

"A CAKE?" She said, taking the small chocolate cupcake with a candle on-top.

"Yeah, a cake! I made it myself." He said, smiling. "I miss the times... of having a little sister that I can actually play with... give gifts to. But now, Sera is all grown up. She'll think that her brother is going cheap on her."

"OH NO! This is the best gift ever!" She said, taking her first bite. "Thank you, Augustine! You're the best!" She kissed his cheek.

"I heard what happened... to you I mean. For the past years I mean." Augustine said, his tone was sympathetic.

"They didn't really adopt me... they just kidnapped me. They said that my grandmother isn't taking good care of me, but they're wrong. You see, some of the police stations are—"

"Controlled by Demons, I know. And Lord Raptor—"

"Sent me to those two Warlocks, killed my granny and brother... yeah. For two years I've been stuck with them, until Mister Lestat, and Miss Jane found me... I miss her, Miss Jane I mean. She was a real mother to me, for ten years. I heard those Warlocks telling me that when I'm ready, they're gonna send me to someone named Valentine."

"Well..."

"Hm?"

"Nothing... I just hope you like the cake. And I'm glad you had a mother who took care of you for the past year." He patted her hair as she chomped down the cupcake.

"Well... at least now I have a big brother too, right?"

Augustine laughed, "Yeah... yeah, you do. And he promises to protect you."

Bonnie raised a brow, "Pinky swear?"

"Pinky swear." Augustine replied.


	9. Trespasses

"I'm telling you, Steve. It might possibly be him!" Ebony said, her eyes flared with fear as she puffed her strawberry flavored cigarette. Steve decided to keep the meeting in secret, so they retreated to their shared-room. He read through the Inferno as Ebony went on with her testimony.

"A picture of Magnus Bane in the book... hmmm... that is strange. This is evidence, Ebony. Good job. But we have to know which of the Night Warriors did it, and if Lestat was the one that ordered them to do it or not."

"It's probably Gil."

"Ebony." Steve said, his tone was serious.

"What?"

"Just be rational and open minded, we can't have sending the wrong suspect to jail."

"And I thought all Shadowhunters are..." Ebony said, but seeing the look on Steve's face, she stopped herself and grinned.

"Well, I propose a meeting with the Night Warriors that are present, along with Mister Lestat, and Augustine."

"No... Augustine sent her home, I guess. That's what he said when I ran into him earlier."

"What time is it?"

"Hmmm... Two AM."

"Alright. Call them."

"Alright Ebony, what's the big deal?" Gil said, scratching his head in agitation. "I was in the middle of my dreams when you came barging in like you own me." They were all in the round table, inside the foyer with the grand staircase. Most of them remained calm, except for Ebony and Gil, of course.

"I still haven't heard of your favorite food." Ebony jibed back.

"PORK. NOW WILL YOU STOP WITH THE FOOD THING?!"

"HA! You know what they say, you are what you eat!" Ebony laughed. "Pigs."

"Steve... I'm gonna punch her."

"Actually, she gets a lot worse if you keep provoking her." Steve replied, obviously annoyed with their nonsense.

"Alright, alright!" Matthew said, emerging from out of nowhere like he usually does, holding a book. "What seems to be the problem, Steve?"

Steve handed him the book, and showed the picture of Magnus. Matthew, despite his immortality, looked tired. Of course, his eyes didn't have bags, but Steve can sense the revolting pain of either being accused or losing his wife, painted on his eyes.

"Where have you found this?" Matthew asked, sitting on a chair.

"In the music room, near Gil." Ebony said, as she shot Gil a poisonous, yet playful look.

"So, you're accusing Gil?" Matthew said.

"No, sir." Steve answered. "We want to know if it's familiar to you."

"Well, it isn't... I have never seen this book my whole life, but weird... it has my scent."

Steve rested his arms on the table, holding his calculative gaze on Lestat. His green eyes were more curious than accusing. "We have to find who did this, before the Clave gets to the bottom of this."

"So, what's your suggestion, old chap?" Augustine said.

"I suggest, that instead of the Clave, we hold Mister Lestat somewhere else. Until we find his wife, and find the killer."

Matthew cleared his throat. "Now, this can't hold until morning..." He pulled a thick leather bound book from his coat, and set it on the table. "This is a book about the Aensland family. Morrigan is the first born, and the supposed ruler of the demon world, she's probably the same succubus you encountered. She's the kind of demon that would do this, alright. She feeds on the souls of men who are weak against lust. And here—" He flipped the book open; the papers made of parchment, and turned to the page of a man, wearing a long cape. "This is Dmitri Maximoff. I've read this book, although it is in the demon language, and according to it, he is the demon that contracted the vampire disease to the mundanes. He is Morrigan's ally, and I think he plans to awaken him.

"He's been asleep for nearly three centuries now, and if he's awakened... Morrigan and he will release all kinds of hell in this world."

Steve stared at him expectantly, waiting for a reaction from the others, but instead, a total eclipse of silence shrouded the room.

"So...—" Steve started, but was cut-off by a loud banging in the front doors.

"OPEN THE GATES, LESTAT! YOU ARE UNDERARREST FOR VIOLATING THE PEACE BETWEEN SHADOWHUNTERS AND DOWNWORLDERS!" said a shrill voice that came from beyond the huge set of double doors.

"I know that voice anywhere." Steve said, staring in disbelief at the doors.

"Sister, or mom?" Augustine said, standing, and grabbing Lestat.

"Maybe both, I don't know. Both of them sound like mad bats that are on opium." Augustine laughed at Steve's remark, but there was no humor in Steve's tone. "Any plans?"

"Gil! The stables slash weapons room!" Bonnie suggested.

"Uhhh.. it's upstairs, the only way upstairs is outside the corridor, you know? The spiral staircase outside? Yeah, we're sort of dead. The only thing to do now is to fight." Gil replied.

"There is another way up, follow me." Lestat said.

But the doors were breaking, which left them not enough time to go through Lestat's idea.

"Alright, Mister Lestat." Bonnie said. "I'll distract them, you go on ahead."

"No!" Matthew immediately said.

"Bonnie is right, we have to distract them somehow." Steve said.

"Well, unless you can fly off the window, and go to the top with ease, then I guess there's no problem."

Steve grinned a devilish grin. "You underestimate my strength, Gil." Something dark, with the faint color of red, exploded from Steve's back before Gil could even reply. He shot towards the window, grabbing something from his picket that looked like a weapon. His dark feathery wings were like burning coals as he flew, just above them.

"What are you waiting for?! GO!" Steve yelled, and just then, the platoon of Adult Shadowhunters burst from the other side, breaking the door with immense force; the others ran towards the backstage. He couldn't admire the power of the rune just yet; there was time for that later.

Bonnie threw a small pellet that shrouded the area with a large cloud of purple smoke, severely confusing the Shadowhunters. Although Bonnie was ready to fire a barrage of bullets at them, Steve stopped her, by grabbing her and flying towards the round window.

The lukewarm feel of the night's air felt annoying to Bonnie, as if it couldn't decide whether it wants to be cold or hot.

"Thanks for stopping me; I could have gone crazy over there!" Bonnie said.

"No problem!"

They stopped on the garden, and entered a small barn. The barn was full of weapons, and in the middle, there's a small gothic carriage.

"GET IN!" Gil yelled from the driver's seat, he was next to Ebony, which was kind of weird. Steve sheathed his wings, and galloped towards the carriage. Bonnie and he sat next to each other.

"Nice night for a—."

"Nope!" Bonnie and Steve said in-unison. Augustine smiled and raised his arms, as if saying "I give up."

Steve noticed that Matthew wasn't here. "Where's Lestat?"

"I thought he was with you!" Augustine protested.

"NO!"

Bonnie peered out of the window, and screamed at the top of her lungs. "MISTER LESTAAAT!" But her scream was muffled by the clapping of the horses' foot, and the loud air that whistled as the carriage flew skyward.


End file.
